1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a belt fastener with a safety belt arrangement comprising shoulder belt and pelvic belt for child safety seats in motor vehicles, wherein the belt fastener comprises a closure device and an insertion device which can be locked therewith with belt guide slot extending at an angle to the central longitudinal axis of the closure device for passage of a section of the shoulder belt, and wherein one end of the pelvic belt is attached to the closure device of the belt fastener.
2. Description of the Prior Art
German Gebrauchsmuster 89 07 836 describes a belt fastener with a safety belt arrangement of the type given above. It comprises a three-part belt fastener, namely a closure device which can be actuated by means of a button and two end pieces for guiding and retaining the belt straps, as well as a belt arrangement in which the two shoulder belts change over into the pelvic belt at the point where they pass through the end pieces without discontinuity. Furthermore, the belt arrangement also includes a crotch belt which is attached to the closure device of the belt fastener. All belts are fixed on the other side of the child safety seat.
In this known belt securing system for child safety seats in motor vehicles, there is a considerable danger of injury to the secured child. When there is stress, that is when there is an accident or braking, the crotch belt of the belt arrangement may lead to injury of the child in the genital region, if the safety seat itself has not been attached correctly and/or the child has assumed an unfavourable position in the safety seat, designed in most cases as a shell seat, because of its usual movements. A further danger of injury to the child consists in that it can squeeze itself in the pelvic belt region in spite of a belt arrangement which is adjusted and applied according to the regulations, because the entire belt fastener can slip downwards, for example due to the usual movements of the child in its seat, for example by bending forward, as a result of which the pelvic belt becomes very tight. At the same time the two shoulder belts thus have too much play, as a result of which the safety effect of these belts is lost for the most part and thus the danger of injury to the child is also increased in the event of stress. Furthermore, operation of this belt fastener is clumsy, since three fastener parts have to be pushed together in the correct sequence, namely initially the two end pieces for the belts which are then inserted together into the closure device. Holding together the two end pieces thus requires a certain dexterity, because the other hand must find, grip and hold the closure device with the crotch belt. The size of this known belt fastener also causes a certain clumsiness in the handling of the safety belt system.
The object of the invention is to improve a belt fastener with safety belt arrangement of the type mentioned in the introduction, so that the adjustment of the safety belt device applied according to the regulations can essentially not be changed both in the event of stress or in a case without stress while maintaining a comfortable strapped-in feeling, for better protection of the child in its seat, so that the operation of the belt fastener is simplified still further and so that the entire belt securing device has a more compact design and is cheaper to manufacture.